This is a sonic collaboration among Revue, WYCE and AMI Jukeboxes. Play this mix as a playlist on AMI Jukeboxes, read about it here every month and stream it on wyce.org. Each of the bands featured will be performing in West Michigan in March 2017.

A few years back, musicians Bruce Ling of Hawks and Owls and Mark Stoltz of Benzie Playboys were lamenting the sort of lull that winter typically brings to the music scene. While venues may keep their stages warm with the shows they can, festivals seem to disappear altogether. So Ling and Stoltz reached out to longtime member of the Wheatland Music Organization, Marilyn Hummel, to see what could be done about bringing a little slice of Wheatland to the winter months. So began the Winter Wheat music festival, now in its eighth year.

The revival of the Third Street corridor in Muskegon is well underway with the opening of Third Coast Vinyl in October 2016. Owned by Pete Pretzer, the store brings new and used records, as well as refurbished stereo equipment.

Pretzer hopes that avid collectors and beginners alike will feel welcome in his new location. One can anticipate a collection of classic rock, soul, funk, newer indie releases and hidden gems galore.

Pretzer spoke with Revue on Muskegon’s rebranding, opening Third Coast Vinyl and changes in the vinyl industry.

When Northern vocalist Ryan Valero decided to come up with the title for his band’s new EP, he wanted to find the saddest phrase in the English language. After a profusion of research, Valero landed on these four words: “It Could Have Been.”

The New Year always presents a time for reflection and rebirth. Old habits can change, new goals can be made, and the future can rise up on the horizon wider and brighter than ever before.

Such is the case for longtime Grand Rapids jam band Ultraviolet Hippopotamus.

From its beginning in spring 2004 in Big Rapids, the five-piece has made a name for itself with a tight mix of funky jams, explosive improvisations, unconventional covers and other “onstage musical alchemy.”